The industrial city in West Germany has reached Germany in 2015. when voluntarily undertook to accommodate 100 migrants more than prescribed, becoming an example of the promise of the Chancellor Angela Merkel: “Wir Schaffen Das” – “We can do it.”
Although the benefits were visible for both sides, three current and former city officials said Reuters that migration was not a magical solution. With the help of inhabitants organized to support new migrants, many found homes and began to contribute to the local economy, officials said.
But some moved to larger cities, which offer more opportunities for education and work. Others were bothered to overcome the linguistic and cultural barriers, which further increased social assistance costs in the city that recorded an increase in the older population, added.
Now the local population complains that the number of refugees and asylum seekers became too large. The results of the recent elections show the growing support for the anti-immigrant foreigner alternatives to Germany (AFD), encouraged frustration due to the growth of lifelong costs and failing infrastructure.
– The glass is half full, half empty – said Thomas Liebig, a researcher who dealt with migration, which contributed to the 2018 economic cooperation and development report (OECD).
– Many refugees found a job, but social cohesion is still lagging behind – it is stated.
Located among picturesque and wooded hills, Altena is an industrial center since the Middle Ages. The Rijeka city is described as a place where the wire production has taken place. But local train drives have struggled to stay competitive, which led to a loss of a third of jobs, he told Reuters former Mayor Andreas Hollstein.
Only a strong automated sector of the steel wire survived. Until 2015, Altena was one of the fastest decreasing cities in West Germany with about 17,000 inhabitants, which is a little more than half of the 1970s number, according to the World Bank.
The reduced tax base has harmed city finances, aggravating basic services, officials said. Schools are closed because there were not enough students to fill the classrooms. When Hollstein proposed to receive multiple refugees and asylum seekers than was provided for the city, 270 people 2015, there was a great support to the members of the City Council.
– Receiving families meant that we could fill out blank flats, reopen classrooms and enter new life to the city, “Anette Wesemann said, Altenina Commissioner for Integration.
– It was a win-win solution – she added.
The city came to the waves of migrants, which were working-capable, including Italians and Turks, employed in the 1960s in factories. So the local population was used to living next to the neighbors with different cultures and languages, Hollstein said.
(Vijesti.ba / Fena)
